Sen. Brown on D&C: Slain athlete not drunk

Wed, 10/20/2010 - 8:07am — Jerry Spar

Senator Scott Brown called in to the Dennis & Callahan show Wednesday morning to discuss the case of Danroy “DJ” Henry, a Pace University football player from Easton who was shot and killed by New York police early Sunday morning outside a bar near the school’s campus.

Brown said he has been in communication with Henry’s family in Easton and wanted to share the information that Henry was not drinking and instead was at the bar to drive his friends home when a brawl broke out and police arrived.

“This kid was the designated driver,” Brown said. “He wasn’t drinking, and no drugs. He swung around to pick up some people. Apparently, he had the big stereo system with the woofers and he was parked in the fire lane. When the officer apparently knocked on his window, he took off, thinking that they wanted him to move, apparently.”

As Henry drove away, police say he clipped one officer with his side-view mirror and hit another, causing him to land on the hood. That officer and another then fired shots at Henry, and the car crashed to a stop. Henry then was handcuffed. A lawyer for Henry’s family accuses police of leaving the dying 20-year-old on the street in handcuffs for “10-15 minutes” while officers with less-serious injuries received treatment from EMTs.

“We’re going to ask for an investigation, obviously, a thorough investigation,” Brown said. “Because you have a kid who is a star football player from this area, a great kid, no record, nothing. And to end his life under these circumstances, I think it’s important to get the facts and get them quickly. So, that’s what we’re going to be calling for, obviously a thorough investigation. If it turns out that [the policeman] acted properly, then so be it. But if it’s the other way around, then obviously there needs to be some type of redress.”